27 Mar 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a pinnacle of work and productivity, abundant life, allow our voices to be heard, artificial intelligence, ask and it shall be given to you, aspires to inspire us, atrophy, be afraid of change, change for change sake, change is necessary, change your direction, Christ is always with us, Christian beliefs, even to our last breath, filled with a heavenly perspective, for a better tomorrow, grocery shopping, have it more abundantly, household chores, I am come that they might have life, knock and it shall be opened, letting the fruit of the Spirit blossom, lose the ability to use our faculties, may contain our salvation, most responsive to change, not all change is good, our friend Anselm, risk disappointment, seek and you shall find, sleeping in, social media, stand up strong for Jesus, stay in our comfort zone, the best things are the hardest to do, the changes we dread most, the indwelling of the Holy spirit, the thief cometh but to steal, we can't run from life
John 10:10b. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
So it’s finally Saturday, and we’re either sleeping in, getting ready to do piled up household chores, or getting ready to go out and do the grocery shopping that we also couldn’t do during the work week. But whatever it is we’re doing, even if it’s just nothing, please remember that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is always right there with us, leading, guiding, encouraging and LOVING us, through the indwelling power of His amazing Holy Spirit!
And for that, we ought to be eternally grateful, because no other faith is guaranteed what we Christians have: the LOVE, mercy and grace of Jesus, that brings forgiveness of sins, and eventually leads to eternal life in heaven with Him. We indeed have the best of all worlds! So let’s give sincere thanks and do our best to walk holy as we go about His business today nuh, so that others can see Christ in us and be encouraged to come to Him, because that’s what He desires of us, His ambassadors, His agents, His foot soldiers! And all God’s children said ‘Amen!’
Now let’s look at the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘If you do not change direction, you might end up where you are heading.’ Yes friends, you can be pretty sure that if you don’t veer away from your current direction, you will end up where it’s leading. For you certainly can’t be going in one particular direction and expect to end up other than where it’s headed.
Consequently, this next quote puts it all into the proper perspective. ‘We can’t be afraid of change. You may feel very secure in the pond that you are in, but if you never venture out of it, you will never know that there is such a thing as an ocean, a sea.’ And that’s the gospel truth! Too many of us prefer to stay in our comfort zone rather than step out of it and risk disappointment or trouble. But trouble and disappointment can, and will find you wherever you are. That’s for sure.
The problem with staying securely in your comfort zone is that you will never really see the beauty and treasures that life really holds. That’s because life only opens up to those who truly seek it, who step out and look for it. Remember what Jesus said: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you.’ (Matt. 7:7) Yes my people, that’s also what life expects of us; to come seeking it. All its beauty and treasures won’t just drop in your lap if you stay safe and comfortable. The same thing goes for our Christian beliefs; we have to step out and show others Christ in us.
And that brings us to this next quote: ‘The changes we dread most may contain our salvation.’ Now that’s no lie my brethren! Ofttimes, the change(s) we are most afraid of are the ones which hold the best end result for us. But that’s just life; the best things are usually the hardest to do and achieve. For whatever reason, life just doesn’t do easy as much as we would like it to. So we can’t run from it, if we want to enjoy it. We have to join the fray; get involved, handle whatever comes against us with a good attitude, with God’s help obviously.
It’s the only way to live the abundant life that Christ says He came and died for us to have. And if you don’t believe me, listen to Him tell it. ‘The thief (that’s Satan) cometh not but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) And that abundant life is one filled with a heavenly perspective, trusting and surrendering to Jesus, walking in the Spirit, and letting its fruit blossom forth in our lives as we journey on to heaven and eternal life. And we can only do that if we are not afraid of change.
So we move on to the next quote that says: ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.’ And that’s true to a great extent since life changes whether we want it to or not. For example, we grow older and more infirm every day, although we don’t want to. (smile) But the ones who handle aging the best are those who realize the predicament and make the necessary changes so that they can still be productive. You eat as healthily as possible, get as much exercise as possible, pray and show LOVE as much as possible.
Now that doesn’t mean we must change just for change’s sake. And that’s why I have an issue with our last quote. ‘We must be impatient for change. Let us remember that our voice is a precious gift and we must use it.’ I thoroughly disagree with the first statement. We should not be impatient for change, because all change is not necessarily good or timely change. And that’s one of the major problems in our world right now: everybody’s hollering for change! But look at all the problems that change has caused us in the last little while nuh, especially with the worldwide explosion of social media, where so much negative stuff is now being disseminated.
Change is good to the extent that it improves our lives, and that does not mean making us fat or fatter and lazier, as has been the case in the last few years. We have so many helpmates nowadays, that we end up doing very little for ourselves, and that’s no good for the species, for as the saying goes, ‘if you don’t use, it you’re going to lose it.’ And that’s exactly what’s been happening to the human race. We haven’t been using all of our faculties and bodies, thus we are steadily losing the ability to function without all of our helpmates.
And with the hasty pursuit of A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) we’ll soon lose even more, as we are required to do even less. You can see it already in platforms like what’s app, where after a few messages, they can almost write one for you. So, soon, we won’t even have to think any more, the machines will be doing it for us. And what do you think will happen to our minds and brains eh? They’ll simply atrophy. We’ll lose the ability to use them. Now is that what we desire for our species? Certainly not!
Too much easy life is no good. That’s why societies fall into disarray and ruin, after having reached a pinnacle of work and productivity. Then they just sit on their fannies and enjoy the good life. But if everyone does that, the society crumbles. Life is strange that way. We work hard to rise to the heights, and when we get there, thinking there’s nothing left to achieve, we just allow it to fall apart.
But that’s not what Jesus expects of his people, of His church my brethren! Our voices are precious, and He expects us to use them to be productive on His behalf right to the very end, even to our last breath, encouraging others to come to Him. So please my fellow believers, let’s stand up strong for Jesus nuh! Let’s allow our voices to be heard loud and clear for what we believe in, and don’t pursue change just for the sake of change. It’s not good for our species, or what God desires for us. Much LOVE!
…change is necessary…but not all change is good…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
26 Dec 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sense of pride, against the knowledge of God, Anself, aspires to inspire us, Boxing Day, bringing every thought, can change the future, Casting down imaginations, Christ has conquered hell death and the grave, Christ's comforting arms, chruch attendane, committed obedience to Christ's teachings, every high thing, find it hard to forgive ourselves, for a better tomorrow, giving thanks for all things, I allow them, in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, is the evil thereof, making melody in your heart to god, memorizing Scriptures, negative thoughts, no amount of guilt can change the past, no amount of worrying, obeying the Covid rules, one one cocoa full basket, only have the power, Ontario lockdown, positive affirmation, praise the Lord for the gift of Christ, regular study and meditation, rejoice and give thanks, setting new records, speaking to yourselves, suffer the undesirable consequences, suffering sinners, sufficient unto the day, take therefore no thought for tomorrow, that exalteth itself, The Christmas season, the control centre of your life, the living truth, the mind is the battlefield, the spiritual war, to make small steps toward big goals, to the obedience of Christ, tomorrow shall take care of itself, we only awesome in Jesus, Ye cannot serve God and mammon, your attitude
2 Corinthians 10:5. Casting down imaginations (arguments), and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought to the obedience of Christ.
And so, most of the excitement is over now…Chuh! I don’t know why as soon as Christmas day is over people seem to think that the Christmas season done nuh, and they stop playing Christmas music, because it isn’t. It lasts from the beginning of Advent, long before the actual day till into the New Year. Remember is a season. And nobody takes down their Christmas trees before January 7thor thereabouts. So if yuh Christmas tree still up then, that means is still the Christmas season, so you suppose to rejoice and give thanks and praise the Lord for the gift of Christ. (smile)
Anyhow, today is Boxing Day, and the Province of Ontario lockdown tighter than ah don’t know what. For sure there’ll be none of the usual Boxing Day sales. Well if yuh can’t behave yuhself when the going is good, then you obviously going to suffer the undesirable consequences!
And that’s exactly what’s been happening here in Ontario; people haven’t been obeying the Covid rules and the cases have been mushrooming, setting new records almost every day, so something had to give. Hope that now all the Christmas festivities sort of over, people will wake up and realize that unless we take serious precautions this virus will become increasingly virulent. But who knows what people will do eh?
Anyway, it’s also Saturday, so let’s check out some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week nuh, as he aspires to inspire us for a brighter tomorrow. And the preface business still running. ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are.’ And as always, I’ll remind us to remind ourselves that we only awesome when we in Jesus, and He’s in us!
And the first quote is this: ‘Negative thoughts only have the power I allow them.’ And that’s the gospel truth, for since Christ has conquered hell, death and the grave, NOTHING negative, even the devil, has any power over us, unless we allow it. And as per negative thoughts, Bruh Paul reminds us that we should be about ‘Casting down imaginations (arguments), and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought to the obedience of Christ.’ (2 Cor. 10:5)
Yes friends, we need to be careful what thoughts we allow to exist in our minds, because the mind is the battlefield of the spiritual war in which we’re engaged. And how do we keep control of our thoughts? One website puts it thus: ‘The word of Christ should dwell in you richly. This can be accomplished by regular study and meditation in the Bible, by memorizing Scriptures, by church attendance, and through committed obedience to Christ’s teachings. It also says to teach and admonish.’
As Bruh Paul said to the Ephesians: ‘Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’ (Eph. 5:19-21) Those are some of the ways we can keep our thoughts and minds strong and reject the negative stuff that’s ever so quick to jump in there.
And the next quote tells us: ‘To make small steps toward big goals is progress.’ Now that’s no lie, for life itself usually goes in small steps, and there aren’t many times when big things happen suddenly as big things, but they mostly grow from small things until they get big. As mih Jamaican people say, ‘one one cocoa full basket.’
And that’s the living truth. You can only put one cocoa in the basket at time, thus we ought to esteem the small things in our lives, because put together, they can grow to big things. Like the mighty oak tree that grows from a small acorn – but it takes a long time to become mighty, doing so in small steps.
Then we come to this: ‘No amount of guilt can change the past, and no amount of worrying can change the future.’ And isn’t that the indisputable truth. Yet we keep on allowing the guilt of our past to hamper our present and future and allow worry for the future to disrupt our present. That’s foolish my people!
Once we have come to Christ and asked for forgiveness for our past wrongs, they were forgiven, so there’s no need to keep letting that guilt attack our souls and spirits. The problem there is that we find it hard to forgive ourselves, and that’s possibly a sense of pride. For if Almighty God has forgiven us, who are we not forgive ourselves eh? We’re just saying there that we don’t really believe and trust God’s forgiveness.
And as per worrying about the future, Jesus said it loud and clear in His Sermon on the Mount: ‘Take therefore no thought for the morrow (therefore do not worry about tomorrow): for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (trouble) thereof.’ (Matt. 6:34)
Ah friends, every day has its own problems, more than enough, so there’s no need to take any from one and put it on the other. We just need to try and live ONE DAY at a time and not get too far ahead of ourselves, for life takes pleasure in gumming up the works if we try to be too smart. (smile)
And our last quote says: ‘The control center of your life is your attitude.’ Now that certainly rings true! Our attitude controls our thoughts and actions. If we have a good attitude, then invariably we have good thoughts and actions. The opposite is also true. If our attitude is bad, then most likely bad thoughts and actions will predominate. And where do we get those polar opposite attitudes from eh? From the two options available to us in this world.
As Jesus said: ‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and LOVE the other; or else he will hold to (be loyal to) the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (earthly riches).’ (Matt. 6:24) And there’s no disputing that! You can’t serve God and the devil at the same time. You have to make a choice. And depending on that choice, you will adopt a certain attitude.
If you choose Jesus, then your attitude will be predominantly good. But if you choose to serve Beelzebub, then your attitude will be predominantly evil! So it’s up to each of us to choose to whom we will bow, but bow to somebody, we must. Let’s hope that most, no, ALL of us choose to serve the One and Only Saviour of our fallen world; JESUS CHRIST! Then, good attitudes will predominate in our world. Much LOVE!
…oh…why is it so hard to get suffering sinners…to come to Christ’s comforting arms eh…
19 Dec 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a city set on a hill cannot be hid, a light unto our path, all things are become new, aspires to inspire us, bold beautiful and brilliant, calm happy content, Christ's ambassadors, Christians, Christmas, eternal life, filled with such hope joy love, for a better tomorrow, free to create the life I desire, glorify your father in heaven, God or mammon, God's everlasting goodness grace and mercy, he is a new creature, His word is a lamp unto our feet, I allow my light to shine, if any man be in Christ, it giveth light unto all that are in the house, joy, Let your light so shine before men, LOVE, members of Christ's august body, neither do men light a candle, old things are passed away, on a candlestick, open to new adventures, our friend Anselm, please the heart of Jesus, pleasing to the eye of the beholder, positive affirmation, pursue right eating and consistent exercise, put it under a bushel, salvation, spiritual maturity, testify from personal experience, the beginning of true hope for mankind, the birth of Jesus, the church, the Holy Spirit, the ole bod rebelled, the prince of darkness, they may see your good works, throwing a monkey wrench, to rejoice in, turn on your high beams, what a joyful time, Ye are the light of the world, you have to bow to somebody, your standard bearer
Mathew 5:14. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.
Yes friends, we pretty late this chilly Saturday morning. And as usual, it’s because the ole fella did one of his real late nights, or early mornings, and the ole bod rebelled at getting up at the normal time without sufficient rest. (smile) And who says our body doesn’t have a mind of its own eh? So we’ll just get right down to business on this last Saturday before Christmas.
Just imagine it nuh, Christmas is only six days away! And what a joyful time it will be, despite the many problems and much strife in our current world, because the birth of Jesus was the beginning of true hope for mankind. Glory be! And every time His birthday rolls around we’re filled with such hope, joy, LOVE, wonder and gratitude that we set aside our earthly problems to rejoice in His everlasting goodness, grace and mercy! So let’s see what our friend Anselm had to tell us this past week nuh, as he aspired to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
And the new style persists, of prefacing each quote with these words: ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are. I’m calm, happy, and content.’ But then I have to turn around and remind us that we can only be all those things if we’re truly in partnership with Jesus, for awesomeness, calmness, happiness and contentment don’t occur unless you have a strong personal relationship with the One who provides those things; Jesus Christ! Matter done!
So to the quotes, and I believe we can tie the first two together: ‘I’m bold, beautiful, and brilliant,’ and ‘My body shape is perfect in the way it’s intended to be.’ And yes, we ought to become bold, beautiful and brilliant when we become members of Christ’s august body, the church, because according to Bruh Paul: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold ALL THINGS are become new.’ (2 Cor. 5:17)
And when all things become new in Christ my brethren then we do become bold and beautiful and brilliant because we are filled with the Holy Spirit of God which is sent to live in us and make us that way; bring us to a wonderful maturity in Christ! Give Him some thanks and praise nuh! And that maturity in Christ certainly gives our spiritual bodies a perfect body shape. I can’t say the same for the physical aspect, although with Christ in us and we in Him, some have been known to pursue right eating and consistent exercise to make our physical bodies look pleasing to the eye of the beholder. (smile)
Then there’s this quote: ‘ I’m open to new adventures in my life.’ Oh yes friends, when we work and live for Jesus, we’re always open to new adventures. We have to be, because undertaking or being involved in new adventures is one of the many ways He uses us to promote His gospel. As a member of Christ’s church and body, you can be sure that life will not be humdrum and very ordinary all the time.
Something new, or some variation of the old will always crop up to keep you on your toes, actively involved in His awesome ministry. And I can testify to that from personal experience. Since I’ve gotten closer to God, so many unexpected things have happened in my life, that sometimes I just have to sit down and ponder them in true amazement. So yes, walking with Christ is an adventure in itself.
But this next quote, ‘I’m free to create the life I desire,’ is definitely not true if you are a serious believer in Christ. And to tell the truth, you’re not even free to create the life you desire if you hold the prince of darkness as your standard bearer, because he too makes certain unwarranted and disliked demands of his followers, which don’t fall into step with their own plans for their lives. So you’re never totally free to live the life you desire, because as they say, you have to bow to somebody; either God or mammon.
And even then, life itself takes pleasure in throwing a monkey wrench into our best laid plans. But the best of all the worlds though is bowing to Christ Jesus, the One who’s name is above EVERY other name, and the One to whom EVERY knee will eventually have to bow. So the earlier you do that, the better it is for all concerned. (smile)
That brings us to this last quote: ‘I allow my light to shine, I unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.’ Now that will certainly please the heart of Jesus, for that’s what He longed for, when He spoke these encouraging words during His earthly sojourn. ‘Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle (a lamp), and put it under a bushel (basket), but on a candlestick (lampstand); and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.’ (Matt. 5:14-15)
And that’s the indisputable truth friends; a city that’s set on a hill can’t hide its light, neither do we light a light only to then hide it. But light is to drive away darkness and that’s what Jesus came to earth to do; to drive away the darkness from our imprisoned lives, give us a future and a hope, an expected end, not calamity, which darkness will always cause since you can’t see where you’re going. And that’s why too His word is a lamp unto our feet, and a light to our path; (Ps. 119:105) so that it can safely guide us as we traverse this dark and evil world.
That’s why Jesus’ next words are ever so important. ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 5:16) Oh my people, we are Christ’s ambassadors in this dark world, that means He expects us to shine brightly, to do His work diligently and efficiently, so that all the world can see what His Father and Him and the Holy Spirit are all about; abundant earthly life, LOVE, joy, salvation and eternal life!
And only as we diligently spread the Word and sincerely live the example, will others be willing to embrace our wonderful God and all that He so gloriously stands for! And when that happens, then we make that last quote ever so true; our light shining brightly, and allowing others to shine their light’s brightly too, so that God can be greatly and wonderfully glorified! Much LOVE!
…in this oh so dark world…Christians need to turn on their high beams…right now…
28 Nov 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: according as God hath dealt, aspires to inspire us, be not conformed to this world, be unique in our own selves, be ye transformed, being in sync with Jesus, body shaming, by the renewing of your mind, calm, destroy our self-esteem, dislike ourselves, do count them but dung, do so ent like so, do ye even so to them, doctored images, English type weather, finally some decent sunshine, for a better tomorrow, for the prize of, God prizes humility above pride, happy, I am enough, I choose to be proud of myself, I counted loss for Christ, I let go of all that no longer serves me, I love myself fully, I press toward the mark, I will not compare myself, it is not good that man should be alone, just how awesome you are, love the Lord your God, Love your neighbour as yourself, more highly than he ought to think, more narcissistic than godly, negative habits, not to think of himself, our friend Anselm, outright lies, positive affirmation, ray of tarnished sunshine, religious credentials, remind yourself, satanic thing, social media, that good acceptable and perfect will of God, the godly realm of Christ, the golden rule, the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, the measure of faith, the ungodly realm of Satan, the way i look, think soberly, this is the law and the prophet, to strangers on the Internet, too big for our britches, what things were gain to me, whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, without me ye can do nothing, ye may prove
Matthew 7:12. Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophet.
Well finally some decent sunshine in my area! Brother! We haven’t really seen the sun in my neck of the woods this past week, just mere dark, cloudy, dreary, wet days, with the occasional ray of tarnished sunshine. Let’s hope this bright flood will last for at a least a couple of days, I’m tired with what they consider the English type weather. (smile) And yes, I know I have Jesus to warm me up and brighten my day, but that doesn’t mean some physical sunshine isn’t nice every once in a while too!
So since it’s that lazy day called Saturday, let’s turn to the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a brighter tomorrow. And as the new style persists, they are all prefaced by: ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are. I’m calm, happy, and content,’ but I will only reference it this one time. And a gentle reminder that all of that is only possible if you’re in cahoots with Jesus! (smile) And the first quote is an ever so important one: ‘I will not compare myself to strangers on the Internet.’
And do we ever need to stop doing that, because it is driving us crazy, especially when the images shown on social media are often outright lies and/or doctored images. We are allowing the practice of body shaming, amongst other negative habits, to destroy our self-esteem and make us dislike ourselves; the way we look, think and behave. That’s utterly foolish my brethren, for who says we need to look like or behave like others eh? If the Lord wanted us to be all alike, He would have made us so. But He wanted us all to be different, to be unique in our own selves, that’s why He created us like we are.
So it’s a sin against Him, our trying to look like others, most of whom are fakers anyway. Right now, social media is the biggest expletive deleted satanic thing we have in our society. It’s being used for more negative stuff than positive. No wonder our society is in the disgusting state it’s in! Nuff said on that!
Then there’s this quote that’s contrary to the first one: ‘I LOVE myself fully, including the way I look.’ Now that’s a li’l more like it! But we must also be on guard that we don’t over LOVE ourselves, or in a manner that’s more narcissistic than godly. It’s necessary that we like ourselves because we take ourselves with us wherever we go, and it’s not wise to have a constant travelling companion you don’t like. (smile)
Remember the premium Jesus placed on true LOVE? He broke down all the commandments to just two: LOVE the Lord God, and LOVE your neighbour as yourself. (Matt. 22:37) That means respecting and caring for your neighbour as you respect and care for yourself. I guess it could be best described by what we call the Golden Rule, more sensitive and commanding words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount. ‘Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophet.’ (Matt. 7:12)
Yes precious people, that ought to be the rule that we live by; do unto others as we want them to do unto us. But unfortunately that doesn’t hold true in today’s society, we practice the other side of the coin, doing to others what we don’t want them to do to us. Or as the ole people would say: ‘Do so ent like so!’ We obviously don’t like others throwing back to us what we first threw to them! Now why does that surprise us eh?
That leads us to this next quote: ‘I am enough.’ Now that I believe is a rather disturbing thought and sentence. Why? Because in the first place we by ourselves are never enough! The saying that no man is an island is ever so true. We can’t stand alone and be as productive and useful as God desires of us. Remember why and what He said when He created Eve in the Garden of Eden? ‘And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him (a helper comparable to him).’ (Gen. 2:18)
Then He formed Eve out of Adam’s rib. If He thought that man was sufficient alone, He would never have made woman to help him. So why do we think that we are sufficient unto ourselves eh? Remember Jesus’ words too about the vine and the branches: ‘…for without me ye can do nothing.’ (John 15:5b) And that’s the gospel truth! And until we all understand that and act wisely upon it, we won’t ever amount to what we were made to amount to! Matter fix!
And again we have another somewhat troubling quote: ‘I choose to be proud of myself and the things I choose to do.’ Now hopefully all those things are not within the ungodly realm of Satan, but within the godly realm of Jesus! If they are within Satan’s realm, then you should not be proud of them, for why should we ever be proud of evil doing eh?
But if they are within the realm of Jesus, you can be proud of them, but not to the exclusion of the one who gave you the strength and grace to do them; meaning Christ, through whom we can do ALL things. And in our pride, please, let’s remember these notable words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.’ (Rom. 12:3)
And the scholars offer this interesting explanation of that verse. ‘12:3. The righteousness of God will cause the believer to conduct himself in humility in the local church (vs. 3-8). Paul meets two dangers that the individual faced in the exercise of his spiritual gifts. He might overestimate himself and try to exercise a gift God never gave him. Or he might underestimate himself and fail to exercise the gift God has given to him. Paul shows that God has given each believer specific gifts to enable him to do what God wants him to do. No one is excluded.’ And that’s the indisputable truth!
However, we must be careful to remember that it’s only through God’s underserved grace that we do all that we do, and not get too big for our britches, like our world has recently gotten, else the Lord will cut us down to size, just like He’s doing right now with all the strife and disasters and sickness He’s allowing in our oh so wonderful, but oh so sinful world!
And the last quote says: ‘I let go of all that no longer serves me.’ And that’s what we all need to do! And I’ll give us just two scriptures on that subject. The first is this, more words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’ (Rom. 12:2) Yes friends, if we intend to live for Jesus, then we need to give up all that the world holds highly, and seek God’s righteousness first of all, by first transforming our minds, because that’s where all the major battles are fought.
And lastly, let’s remember Bruh Paul’s words to the church at Philippi! ‘But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung (rubbish), that I may win Christ.’ (Phil. 3:7-8) Yeh friends, Bruh Paul gave up all his many educational and religious credentials to know Christ! He even considered them rubbish in the end.
Now let’s remember that God prizes humility above pride, but we still need to have a delicate balance between both. So let’s go home with these words of Bruh Paul ringing in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls nuh. ‘I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 3:14) We couldn’t do any better. Much LOVE!
… a good and successful life…all hinges on…being in sync with Jesus…
14 Nov 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a God-centred revival, a Love Revolution, a part of my journey, allow me to appreciate the good, and with what measure ye mete, aspires to inspire us, be of good cheer, becoming like Jesus, can't appreciate joy, can't appreciate the sun, codemn not, count it all joy, criticize not, difficult times, do so ent like so, do unto others as you want them to do to you, filled with the Holy Spirit, for a better tomorrow, for with what judgement ye judge, from God's viewpoint, God'saints, God's faithful promises, gospel truth, grow in our christian faith, hazy and lazy, I choose not be critical, i have overcome the world, in the world, it is he who giveth thee, it shall be measured to you, judge not, let patience have her perfect work, like a boomerang, meditating on god's word, my potential to succeed is limitless, not to judge the inner motives of another, our friend Anselm, positive affirmation, prejudiced information, remember the Lord thy god, some semblance of normalcy, strife-filled mess, successful in God's mercies, successfully rise up over tribulation, test our mettle, the power to get wealth, the trying of faith, them's the breaks, then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, thou shalt have good success, turbulent days, until you have experienced sorrow, when ye fall into divers temptations, worketh patience, ye shall be judged, ye shall have tribulation, you have experienced the rain
Deuteronomy 8:18. Remember the Lord thy God: for it is he who giveth thee the power to get wealth…
Oh, it’s a lazy, hazy Saturday morning… and I’m late and hazy and lazy too! (smile) Did some other things before coming down to write the Bit, and now I’m a li’l miffed at myself for not getting started earlier. But them’s the breaks. Get over it self! (smile)
And what’s the news this morning eh? Nothing has changed! The world is still in a volatile, unholy, strife-filled mess. And if you like the status quo, then I suppose that’s good news for you. If you don’t… well what can I say eh? Nothing but keep praying, repenting, getting back to God…and tell everyone you know, shout it from the rooftops that that’s the ONLY way our world will ever recover some semblance of normalcy! Nothing much is going to improve until there’s a big God-centred Revival in our world; a LOVE Revolution! Now that’s my stand…and I’m sticking to it! (smile)
So, since it’s Saturday, let’s see what interesting quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And again, I only got three quotes instead of the usual five. And no, I’m not complaining – no way – because now I only have to wrap my head around three and not five quotes. Glory be!
And he’s also continuing this new style of prefacing each one with this proviso: ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are. I’m calm, happy, and content.’ But please remember we are only awesome and truly happy, calm and content in Christ Jesus; when He’s in us and we are in Him! Much LOVE and thanks to our wonderful Lord and Saviour! And also as usual, we’ll leave out the proviso from here on in. But please remember it in the context of Jesus.
So here’s the first quote: ‘I choose not to criticize myself or others around me.’ Now that’s such a wonderful attitude! And besides our world is filled with too much criticism these turbulent days, unsupported criticism at that too. It’s one of our favourite games in this time of social media and rampant technology. And it’s one of those games where we like to give, but can’t take. We all LOVE to criticize, but we can’t accept it, even when it’s useful and true.
Let’s stop for a moment and remember these awesome words of our Leader, Jesus Christ nuh. ‘Judge not (condemn not, criticize not), that ye be not judged (condemned, criticized). For with what judgement (condemnation, criticism) ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete (use), it shall be measured to you again.’ (Matt. 7:1-2)
In other words friends, do unto others as you would like them to do unto you, because whatever you do, in whatever measure, it will eventually boomerang right back to you, and most likely you will be appalled at it. (smile) As the ole people would say: ‘Do so ent like so!’ And that’s the gospel truth, for we don’t like getting back the negative stuff we throw in other’s faces.
But listen to this explanation from the scholars on the subject. ‘7:1-4. Judge not refers to an unfavourable and condemnatory judgement. This does not mean that a Christian should never exercise judgement of any kind under any circumstances. The point being made here is that we are not to judge the inner motives of another. We are not to render a verdict based upon prejudiced information. Nor are we to use ourselves as the standard of judgement for with what…ye mete (measure) you shall be judged. That ye be not judged refers to the ultimate judgement of God rather than our own judgement.’
Hope that clarifies the subject and means that our criticism level will drop by at least three quarters, because a lot of the time we criticize, it’s not even that we have prejudiced info, but NO info at all. That’s how bad criticism is in these troubled and uncertain times!
And the second quote proclaims: ‘My potential to succeed is limitless.’ Now that is certainly true…but again under the right situation and circumstances. One must first be filled with the Holy Spirit of Jesus and being obedient and obeisant to Him, so that we can be calm, happy and contented. But here’s the kicker in these words of Moses to the Israelites: ‘Remember the Lord thy God: for it is he who giveth thee the power to get wealth…’ (Deut. 8:18) Yes friends, unless we are living under God’s protective and powerful umbrella, our lives won’t be as thrilling, adventurous and successful.
Remember His words to Joshua on remembering and meditating on His word and doing all contained therein? Why? ‘…for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ (Josh. 1:8) It couldn’t be any plainer than that my people. And the thing we don’t understand about being successful in God’s mercies, is that with Him, success is lasting, not the uncertain, fleeting kind that comes when we try to accomplish it in our own strength following the ways of the world.
So here’s the last quote…and it’s a dandy! (smile) ‘Difficult times are part of my journey and allow me to appreciate the good.’ And is that the indisputable truth! Thus the sayings like: ‘you can’t appreciate the sun until you experience the rain,’ ‘you can’t appreciate joy until you have experienced sorrow.’ It’s only when we experience the bad that we can truly appreciate the good. And nowhere is that clearer than in Jesus’ economy, for ofttimes He allows us to go through rough times to test our mettle, to mature us in His style. For we all know that we only truly grow in difficult times, not much in good ones.
Now in this evil and sinful world difficulties do abound. And Jesus didn’t hesitate to remind us of that when He said: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that ye might have peace. In the world ye shall tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) And He certainly overcame, hell, death and the grave. So he knows what He’s talking about.
And His brother James puts it thus: ‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials); Knowing this, that the trying (testing) of your faith worketh (produces) patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing.’ (James 1:2-4) Yes friends, we need to look at our trials from God’s viewpoint; that they are maturing us and making us more like Jesus in character which is God’s eventual plan for ALL of his children.
And yes, most of us try to find a way to escape from the trials and temptations, but it’s necessary that we go through them if we want to mature and grow in our Christian faith. And remember too that the Lord has promised to always be with us, helping us all the way. Now that belief is what our faith is built on, and with it we can successfully navigate any problems we encounter in this world! So let’s stand strong and steadfast, surrounded by all of God’s faithful promises! Much LOVE!
…when trials and tribulation come…God’s saints successfully rise up over them…
31 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: an attitude of appreciation, an evil heart of unbelief, aspires to inspire us, awesome in Christ, begging for candy, bounden duty, calm happy and content, circumspection, cnatankerous, cometh down from the Father of lights, complain about what we don't have, costumed balls, Covid-19, departing from the living God, enjoy abundant life, every good gift, every perfect gift is from above, evil looking costumes, exhort one another daily, for a better tomorrow, from Genesis to Revelation, glorifies evil spirits, gravelicious, greedy society, Halloween Day, hang all the law and the prophets, help bring out the best in me, I appreciate everything I have, I approve of myself, I love myself deeply, I'll tell you who you are, Jesus died for us to have, Jesus is the best gift ever, just how awesome you are, LOVE the Lord with all our hearts, Love thy neighbour as thyself, miserable, more at ease everyday, my life is a gift, narcissism, neither shadow of turning, no man is an island, not thankful for the plenty we do have, our friend Anselm, pandemic time, petitions to ban Halloween, positive affirmation, proud and narcissistic, remind yourself, riotous parties, show me your friends, Stage 2 Lockdown, surround myself with positive people, the deceitfulness of sin, the first commandment, the Giver of the gospel, the Lord dislikes the proud, trick or treating, while it is called Today, witches and goblins, with whom is no variableness
James 1:17. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness (variation), neither shadow of turning.
Well at last we have a somewhat sunshiny opening to a day, not the cloudy, overcast stuff we’ve been having recently! And it’s a big Saturday in the northern climes; Halloween Day! It’s the day the society dresses up in ugly, evil looking costumes – the uglier and more evil looking, the better- and have the children go out ‘trick or treating,’ begging at other people’s houses for candy, and the adults have costumed balls and riotous parties. Well let’s see what’s going to happen this year of Covid nuh.
Halloween hasn’t been officially banned, and there have been all sorts of comments, for and against, but the Covid-19 numbers have not been coming down, although the more populous areas are still in Stage 2 Lockdown. So, in my humble opinion, it is pure folly to have children running around the streets in the dark in this pandemic time to beg for candy from people most of them don’t know, and for adults to be having parties with unprotected crowds without any physical distancing.
Even in the good times there have been petitions to ban the process because of the evil stuff people were putting in the candy and fruit to harm the children. And worse of all, if it glorifies the evil spirits like witches and goblins and the like, why have such a day in a supposedly godly society eh? But what does the ole fella know eh friends? Obviously not a whole lot. (smile) So we’ll just leave that subject alone and see what transpires later on.
And since it’s Saturday, let’s turn to more appropriate things, like the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And it seems like he’s adopted a new style, prefacing each quote with the words: ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are….’
Now I think that statement contains elements of both good and bad. The bad part is that if we focus on it too much, it could lead us to believe that we’re so wonderful and awesome in our own strength and thus we develop proud and narcissistic thoughts and behaviour. However, on the good side, we are awesome and wonderful IN Christ! No doubt about that! So let’s put some wise and sensible reins on our thoughts about our awesomeness nuh. (smile) Anyway, I’m not going to reiterate the opening sentence in each quote, since we already know what it is. I’ll just give us the important last part.
And the first quote tells us: ‘My life is a gift and I appreciate everything I have.’ The first part is indeed true: our lives are gifts from God Himself. For God Himself, with His own hands, moulded man from the dirt of the earth, in His own image, then breathed His precious breath into his body. (Gen. 1:27; 2:7) And furthermore, James tells us thus: ‘Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness (variation), neither shadow of turning.’ (James 1:17)
It stands to reason then, that if our lives and all the good stuff we have are gifts from God, then we ought to appreciate everything we have. But do we truly appreciate them? Not really nuh, not in our current greedy and ‘gravelicious’ society. For we complain more about the few things we don’t have, than we are thankful for the plenty we do have. Consequently, many of us can’t truthfully declare the next quote. ‘I’m calm, happy, and content.’ And we will never be able to do so until we realize that ALL we have comes from Almighty God…and begin appreciating it.
Yeh friends, calm and content only come with an attitude of appreciation. And also, until you show appreciation for all that God has done for you, and is still doing, you won’t be able to make this next statement either. ‘I’m more at ease every day.’ For ease, likewise, comes only with true appreciation of all our blessings. One can’t be cantankerous, miserable and unappreciative and enjoy the abundant life that Jesus died for us to have. (John 10:10)
Remember too that Jesus is the biggest and best gift that God gave us, through whom we achieve eternal life, despite our sinful, ungodly beginnings. Bruh Paul put it this way to the church at Rome. ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom. 5:23) And if we have become wise and accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, then most likely we’ll be able to proclaim this next quote. ‘I’ll surround myself with positive people who will help bring out the best in me.’
Oh friends, that is indeed wisdom from above! Why? Because too many of us surround ourselves with those who bring out the worse and not the best in us. That’s why the Good Book tells us so specifically: ‘Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort (encourage, lift up) one another daily, while it is called TODAY; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.’ (Heb. 3:12-13)
Oh mih bredrin, it is ever so important to surround ourselves with wise, godly people, who will encourage us to do good, to do our best, for that’s what Jesus desires of His followers. Remember too that no man is an island, and we can’t live this life alone, or in too much seclusion, for the Lord made us to have fellowship one with another. As the old people would say; ‘Show me your friends, and I’ll tell you who you are.’ And that’s the living truth, since our friends’ behaviour and attitude rub off on us.
That brings us to this last quote: ‘I approve of myself and LOVE myself deeply.’ Now if all the other quotes are true of us, then we can make that kind of statement, but not too strenuously, (smile) because like believing we’re so awesome, it can lead us away from God, to the heights of narcissism, and we know there’s nothing the Lord dislikes like a proud, supposedly independent, self-LOVING person. Oh yes, we do need to LOVE and approve ourselves, but with a very careful attitude, so that we don’t go overboard and fall victim to the evil inherent in such thinking. As Jeeves would probably say: ‘circumspection my dear man – much circumspection.’ (smile)
And I can’t think of a better way to end today, than with these immortal words of Jesus as per our earthly duty. ‘Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’ (Matt. 22:37-40)
And that’s the gospel truth my people, straight from the Giver of the gospel! So let’s go out and action them nuh. It’s our bounden duty as believers in Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…from Genesis to Revelation…it’s all about LOVE…God’s LOVE for us…our LOVE for Him…and for each other…
24 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a follower of Jesus Christ, aspires to inspire us, awaken to a li'l sunshine, be not afraid, be prosperous, be strong and of a good courage, bountiful blessing, criminals on the other crosses, enjoying our earthly life, Father forgive them, for a better tomorrow, for they know not what they do, forgiveness, gambling for Christ's clothing, God so loved the world, have everlasting life, have good success, have it more abundantly, he gave his only begotten son, I am come that they might have life, I am the vine, I am worthy of love, I'm courageous, I'm in control of how I react, Indian summer, indisputable truth, into the mire of hell, Jesus the titanic force, joyful and strong in Jesus, just how awesome you are, let not your heart be troubled, Love makes the world go round, love sweet love, meditiating on God's word, my peace I give unto you, not just for some but for everyone, our friend Anselm, Peace i leave with you, positive affirmation, religious leaders mocking Jesus, reviling Jesus, Roman soldiers, should not perish, stand up for myself, tell yourself, the crowd blaspheming Jesus, the dark clouds tussling with the sun, the devil cannot defeat us, the joy of the Lord is your strength, the Lord thy God is with thee, the reason Christ was on the cross, the sunshine won the victory, to remind yourself, wait till we get to heaven, what the world needs now, while we were yet sinners, whosoever believeth in him, without me ye can do nothing, ye are the branches
John 3:16. For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Oh friends, it’s so good to finally awaken to a li’l sunshine after all the wet, dreary mornings of this past week! I believe this is the first time all week, although some of those days have eventually morphed into sunshiny ones. And just for your info, yesterday the sunshine won the victory! Glory be! It turned into a warm and windy day. So warm that I couldn’t sit on my porch in my shirtsleeves in the afternoon for very long because the sun was actually burning me. (smile)
Imagine that nuh, in late October, in these northern climes. I guess it’s what we’d call a true Indian summer’s day. But the rain did come back late in the evening, and the dark clouds are now tussling out there with the sunshine for superiority, so it’s another watch and wait and see, just like we ought to be doing with our faith in Almighty God. (smile) But enough with the weather scene, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
And it seems like Anselm was on a positive affirmation kick this past week, (smile) because every quote begins with the words: ‘Positive affirmation you should tell yourself to remind yourself just how awesome you are,’ which is then followed by the positive affirmation. So we’re not going to repeat the first part, just the affirmation itself. And just as a gentle reminder, you are an awesome being if you are a follower of Christ Jesus, meaning that He is in you, and you are in Him! Glory Hallelujah!
And the first positive affirmation of your awesomeness is: ‘I’m in control of how I react to others.’ Now that should be a very true statement, especially if we’re followers of Christ, because Christ was always in control of His reaction to others, and we need to follow His example. Look at how the Pharisees and other groups mocked and jeered and harassed and finally killed Him. But you never heard Him react with the same venom that they hurled at Him. And what were some of His dying words on that old, rugged cross? ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34)
And these words from the website Gotquestions.org, provide an interesting explanation of that particular situation.‘Jesus looked down from the cross upon a scene that must have been distressing to Him. The Roman soldiers were gambling for His clothing (John 19:23-24); the criminals on the crosses to either side of Him were reviling Him (Matt. 27:44); the religious leaders were mocking Him (Matt. 27:41-43); and the crowd was blaspheming Him (Matt. 27:39).
Surrounded by this most unworthy lot, Jesus prayed for them. “Father, forgive them” is a prayer of unmatched mercy and LOVE. It is important to note that Jesus’ prayer, “Father, forgive them,” does not mean that everyone was forgiven, unilaterally, without repentance and faith. It does mean that Jesus was willing to forgive them —forgiveness was, in fact, the reason He was on the cross. The words “Father, forgive them” show the merciful heart of God.’
Are our hearts as merciful, do we show that forgiving and graceful attitude? That brings us to the next positive affirmation. ‘I’m courageous and stand up for myself.’ Yes, we ought to be courageous and stand up for ourselves. But again friends, we can only do so much on our own. We need Jesus as our backer, our titanic force that stands beside us and victoriously confronts all who come against us. What did Jesus say? ‘I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.’ (John 15:5)
And that’s the gospel truth my brethren! Without Jesus, there’s not a whole lot we can do successfully. Remember too, the Lord’s admonition to Joshua when He made him leader of the Israelites after Moses’ death. Having told him that only through meditating constantly on His word, could he be prosperous and have success, (Josh. 1:8) He followed it up with: ‘Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.’ (Josh. 1:9)
Yes friends, we can stand up strongest and be the most courageous when Jesus is an integral part of our lives. And along with that comes this next positive affirmation: ‘I choose peace.’ Oh Mama Mia people! That’s a glorious truth! For when we are imbued with the spirit of Christ, peace becomes a natural by-product. Yeah! And the peace we find in Christ is not only awesome but also incredible, and it’s a kind of peace that we can’t find anywhere else. Wow! Here how Jesus characterizes it nuh. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:26)
Ah mih people, when the peace of Christ reigns in us, we’re neither troubled nor afraid, we can go through all sorts of troubles, like we doing right now, and yet still be at peace, because Christ’s peace is one that passes all understanding, all human reasoning. It’s a divine peace. And you know what that brings with it? This positive affirmation: ‘I deserve to have joy in my life.’ Yes precious people, joy is the fulfillment of Christ’s promise in our lives. Remember His immortal words? ‘I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10b)
Oh my fellow saints of Christ, having life and having it more abundantly means enjoying our earthly life, hard though it may be at times, and not waiting until we get to heaven to enjoy it. What’s the purpose of Christ sacrificing Himself for us eh, and reconciling us to the Father, if we don’t enjoy that bountiful blessing down here? And remember too these marvellous words: ‘for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ (Neh. 8:10) That’s why the enemy is always seeking to steal our joy, cause he knows that without it we can be easily defeated. Like Samson when Delilah cut off his locks became weak, so we become weak when we lose the joy of the Lord.
And all of the above leads us to this last positive affirmation: ‘I am worthy of LOVE.’ And isn’t that the most glorious, awesome, indisputable truth? It surely is! As sons and daughters of God, heirs of God with Jesus, how can we not be worthy of God’s greatest attribute, LOVE, eh? Remember the main reason Jesus gave for coming to earth to save us? ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16)
Yeh mih bredrin! It’s LOVE that moved God’s heart toward us while we were still sinners, and it’s LOVE that makes the world go round, and it’s LOVE that we don’t have enough of in this current world, why our society is in such shambles and steadily going down into the mire of hell. So let’s perk up, be courageous and stand up, for and with Christ, and show LOVE, for the devil cannot defeat us when we’re joyful and strong in Jesus. Much LOVE!
…what the world needs now…is LOVE, sweet LOVE…not just for some…but for everyone…
03 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a continuous learning curve, a good objective of leadership, a sense of pride, always interesting and adventurous, always room for improvement, and have it more abundantly, aspires to inspire us, by the skin of our teeth, Christ does not do mediocrity, do Jesus' work, do time in the trenches, don't settle for mediocrity, enjoy the fruits of others sacrifice, fighting to reach higher ground, for a better tomorrow, from glory to glory, gospel truth, help those doing poorly to do well, help those doing well to do even better, I am come, I have power to lay it down, I have power to take it up again, I lay down my life, I lay it down my self, Immortal words of Jesus, it was made to unfurl, Jesus the greatest Leader ever, lead to stunning results, leaders must know how to follow, leave us in the lurch, lessons to be learned, living for Christ, lose all motivtion, love and nurture it, make the best of ir, mundane tasks, never let good enough be good enough, no man taketh it from me, not a status you reach, obedient unto death, one hit wonders, one one cocoa full basket, our friend Anselm, over time, plant a seed, same old, slide back down to the bottom, small daily improvements, success is a process that continues, that I might take it again, that they might have life, that's just how life is, the death of the cross, the thief cometh but to steal, therefore doth my father love me, to kill and destroy, true leaders sacrifice themselves, wait for it to grow, we have to receive it, willing to sacrifice, with a good atitude, words of wisdom, you can always get better
John 10:17. Therefore doth my Father LOVE me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
Break open Saturday…wide and free…sunny and bright, but somewhat chilly, as most of the days henceforth will be! (smile) But that’s just how life is, how it was made to unfurl in the northern climes, and we just have to make the best of it with the tools we’ve been given. And believe me, we can do so successfully, if we just settle down and concentrate on the Lord for He’s already given us all the tools we need to be successful. He wouldn’t create us and then leave us in the lurch. That’s definitely not His style.
Remember these immortal words of Jesus: ‘The thief cometh not but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have live, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10) Wow mih bredrin! What an amazing promise! But as always, we have to go out and receive it, make it come true, through our sincere, godly efforts. Sermon done! (smile)
Now let’s see what words of wisdom our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘Success is a process that continues, not a status that you reach. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.’ And that is ever so true! Success doesn’t just stop when you reach the top of the hill; it’s a continuous learning curve. What happens if you stop when you’re on top eh? You lose all motivation, you get lazy and apathetic, then you slowly start sliding back down to the bottom. To stay on top, you have to be continuously learning and improving in some area(s).
As the quote says, once we’re alive, there are always things for us to learn…if we want to stay truly alive. (smile) And that’s why this next one is such good advice. ‘Don’t settle for mediocrity; never let good enough be good enough.’ Oh friends, is that ever gospel truth, especially if you’re a believer in Christ, because Christ does not do mediocrity! In his realm it’s either excellence or nothing at all! But so many of us, beset by the troubles and trials of this world settle for just good enough. That’s wrong my people. The Lord made us to excel, not to come in second, to make it just by the skin of our teeth. That’s the world’s way, not the Christian’s!
As believers we should always be fighting to reach higher ground as we do Jesus’ work. And that nicely segues us into the next quote. ‘No matter how good you get you can always get better, and that’s the exciting part.’ That’s for certain sure precious people of God! There is always room for improvement. And when we believe that, then learning and growing gets exciting, especially if we’re living for Christ.
Now, living for Christ is always somewhat difficult, but we know that living for Him is also always interesting and adventurous. So let’s hold on tightly to Him and all that He has and provides nuh, so that we can live the more abundant and excellent life that He expects from us and died for us to have. And the good thing about Jesus is that He does not expect whopping big miracles and deeds from us, but just that we do our daily, mundane tasks with a good attitude, a sense of pride and fulfillment, even though the everyday tasks are often boring and same old, same old.
And that’s where this next quote comes in: ‘Small daily improvements over time lead to stunning results.’ That’s the magic formula my people! A little every day, eventually adds up to a great amount. As mih Jamaican bredrin would say: ‘One one cocoa full basket.’ And that’s the living truth! The problem with our society these days is that we all want to reach to the top, but too quickly. We don’t realize that if we don’t grow to the top, when we get there we won’t stay there.
Just look at all the one hit wonders, all those who flew to the top on a jet plane. Hn! And what happened eh? They descended with just the same speed…or even quicker. But those who do their time in the trenches and learn what life is really all about, knowing that it takes a while to reach the top, when they get there, they will know what it takes to stay there.
Yuh see friends, real life is all about learning and growing. It’s just like planting a seed. You have to wait for it to grow; it doesn’t just grow up overnight. But all the while you have to LOVE and nurture it; water and weed around it. That’s how we ought to treat our lives, LOVING and nurturing them as we patiently grow them.
And this last quote gives us some invaluable advice on the whole subject. ‘A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.’ Yeh friends, real leaders help others to grow! Leadership is not about us, but about those who are following us. That’s why Jesus is such a wonderful leader. He cares about those who follow Him more than he cared about Himself. That’s why He sacrificed Himself on the cross at Calvary for a bunch of no good sinners like us.
Yuh think He really wanted to die such a horrible death? No way! But the Father asked, and there was no other way, so He went obediently like a lamb to the slaughter. That’s what true leaders do; sacrifice themselves for their people, not ask their people to sacrifice themselves while they sit quietly by and enjoy the fruits of that sacrifice. And I believe that’s the best way to judge a leader; by what he or she is willing to sacrifice for the movement.
And another thing about leaders, they must be able to follow. Yes friends, you can’t truly lead, unless you first know how to follow. Then you know how following feels, and that then enables you to lead properly. Sadly, that means that many leaders today are not real leaders because most of them don’t know how to follow, and are calling on others to sacrifice for them, but they themselves are not willing to sacrifice for the cause. But our Leader, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ did just that! He knew how to follow too. And that’s why He’s the greatest Leader the world has ever, and will ever see!
These words of His will prove my contention. ‘Therefore doth my Father LOVE me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.’ (John 10:17-18)
That’s true leadership my people! Jesus had the power, but He did not abuse it, as so many of today’s so-called leaders do. And He was willing to sacrifice for the cause. But He also knew how to follow because He was always obedient to the Father. As the Good Book says: ‘He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Eph. 2:8b) Now that’s the example we need to go out and do our best to follow. We won’t ever perfect it, but we’re certainly expected to try. Much LOVE!
…God’s people… learn and grow…bit by bit…as He moves them…from glory to glory…
26 Sep 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a kiss from heaven, a word of encouragement, Abba, as many as are led by, aspires to inspire us, chances to proliferate, for a better tomorrow, giving the virus, heirs of God, inferiority not in our DNA, intimate relationship with God, Jesus assumes His rightful throne, joint-heirs with Christ, lazy restful day, live their lives devotedly, LOVE, our friend Anselm, people refusing to follow, sacrificially to the Lord, Saturday, the promise of glorification, the safety precautions, the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God, trials and tribulations, use wisdom and common sense
Romans 8:14. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Saturday, oh Saturday! You lazy, restful day! How I do LOVE thee! I won’t even bother counting the ways because there are way too many! (smile) But on a serious note though, many more of us ought to take the opportunity of spending a lazy, restful Saturday in our own homes and spaces with our own bubblicious people (people of our bubble) instead of going out and giving the virus more chances to proliferate than it already has. Be sure that if you give it the opportunity it will gladly take it.
That’s why we are seeing cases trending upwards in so many areas that were doing good before restrictions were lifted. And basically it’s not the lifting of the restrictions causing the problem nuh, it’s the people refusing to follow the safety precautions that’s making matters worse. So please use wisdom and common sense in all your movements. And that’s my rant for today! (smile) Now let’s see what goodies our friend Anselm had to offer this week as he aspires to inspire us to a better tomorrow.
And the first quote, or rather the first two say, as they are intertwined: ‘Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection.’ And ‘Practice the philosophy of continuous improvement. Get a little better every single day.’ Now that seems to make perfect sense. It’s always better to improve a li’l every day, than to make one big, long jump, because then you don’t really experience or appreciate the full benefits that moving slowly along the continuum of life and learning have to offer.
I guess it’s like the Lord has us believers moving a li’l every day, from glory to glory, as we try to become like Christ in character and attitude. We wouldn’t really grasp the full meaning of the situation because at every step there are certain things, be they problems, nuances etc. needed for good and true growth. That means those strategic and important insights can only be gained and understood if we actually confront them.
And I think this next quote falls right in line with what we’ve been talking about. ‘Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.’ Now that’s oh so true! Very seldom will we find something great that has blossomed directly from one thing or situation. It usually takes a few, sometimes even many things and situations to come together to make a great doing. So we should not be against or offended by small things or tasks.
Yes, I know our society blindly likes to worship at the altar of great things and tasks, but if we look closely at the lives of the supposed superstars – remember there’s only ONE real Superstar; JESUS – you’ll find that they didn’t just rise to prominence overnight, but had been struggling in the background for ages before their light finally burst forth on the main stage. That’s why we ought not to deny or look down on small things or small beginnings, for like in the normal state of nature, most things, trees, animals, humans, all start out small and over the course of time, with the proper nourishment and incentives grow big and strong.
So lowly, menial jobs are not to be considered beyond your scope, because at the bottom is where many of those currently at the top started, and there’s no better way to learn anything than to begin at the bottom. That brings us to this next interesting quote: ‘We are too busy mopping the floor to turn off the faucet.’ I guess that means we’re concentrating on one particular thing with such steadfastness, meanwhile something else that’s also important, or even more important, is passing us by unnoticed.
And I believe that happens a lot in this crazy, unfocussed world, where we jump from thing to another as the mood or feeling takes us, or our influencers lead us. But friends, as believers in Christ, we need to concentrate fully on what He has asked us to do. And He certainly hasn’t asked us to jump from one flower to the next like a bee or butterfly, that’s their job, ours is to be steady and complete stuff, before we move on to something else. And that’s why so many of us have no true balance in our lives; our efforts are unfortunately scattered hither, thither and yon.
Without a fair sense of balance, our lives won’t be as productive as they ought to, or can be. That brings us to the last quote: ‘Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.’ And that’s the indisputable truth friends! Only if we listen to their lies and deceits and believe them, can others ever make us feel inferior. Remember, we are true believers in Christ, which means we have Him, His Holy Spirit dwelling in us, and as the Good Book says so plainly: ‘For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.’ (Rom. 8:14)
And NO child of Jehovah God can ever be inferior! That’s just not possible. Inferiority is NOT, and NEVER will be in our DNA! So please don’t listen to the foolishness of this world, when others try to put you down or make you feel less than you are. Hear the Good Book again. ‘For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.’ (Rom. 8:15)
Yeh friends, as a true believer in Christ, there’s no need to fear or cower from this world, for as the scholars tell us: ‘8:15. The Spirit of adoption: The Holy Spirit places the believer as a son in God’s family. Abba is Aramaic for “father.” This is the intimate name used only by members of the family. It’s use here denotes the intimacy of the believer’s relation to God.’ So my people, if we have such an intimate relationship with the Creator of this universe that we can call Him, ‘Father,’ how can we ever consider ourselves to be inferior eh?
‘The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified with him.’ (Rom. 8:16-17) Oh precious people, if we are heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ, then there’s no inferiority whatsoever in us! As the scholars explain: ‘8:17: Joint-heirs with Christ: All believers share all of the inheritance together. They also have the promise of glorification if their lives are lived devotedly and sacrificially unto the Lord.’
What more can I say eh? Nothing, but for us to keep on living devotedly and sacrificially unto the Lord, despite the many trials and tribulations that come against us, so that we can receive the promise of glorification when Jesus assumes His rightful throne. Much LOVE!
…a word of encouragement…is like a kiss from heaven…so let’s offer many words of encouragement nuh…
19 Sep 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a personal decision, accepting Christ as Lord and Saviour, all ye that labour, an indisputable fact, ask the right question, aspires to inspire us, built his house upon a rock, busyness, can't make him drink, come unto me, connect with Jesus, doeth them, easily fooled, everything can be improved, faith is the currency, fall in line, find rest for your souls, focus on being productive, for a better tomorrow, fraudulent society, gentle, gospel truth, guide and director, gullible, heavy laden, house built on the rock, house built on the sand, humble, I am meek and lowly in heart, I can do all things through Christ, I will give you rest, I will liken him unto a wise man, in Jesus economy, it's not too late, Jesus is the rock, lead a horse to water, learn from me, life is going to leave you behind, make Jesus the number one priority, makes countless thousands mourn, man's inhumanity to man, manage the cause not the result, medications, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, necessary to have Jesus, our friend Anselm, pandemic, predatory animals, run around like chickens with our heads cut off, Saturday, shrinks and charlatans, take my yoke upon you, the Good Book, the great invitation, the imperial prince of darkness, the lazy day, the most wasteful thing in the world, the perfect storm, the slave master's stringent rules, the Son of God, the word of the Lord, too busy, two foundations, whosoever heareth these sayings, worldwide strife, worry, worry is like a rocking chair
Matthew 7:24. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a (the) rock:
And then came that lazy day we call Saturday! No work! Glory be! At least no work out the street, but possibly plenty at home where we haven’t accomplished much for the last five days. What a bam-bam eh! Work for we living under the slave master’s stringent rules for five days straight, then have to come home now and do our own work. Somehow that doesn’t seem right. (smile) But that’s the way it is in our modern, busy society, and yuh better fall in line, otherwise life just going to leave yuh behind! (smile)
That’s why it’s so necessary to have Jesus Christ as the guide and director of our lives, because with Him running the show we can handle anything that comes against us with authority and power downloaded from Him. That’s why we keep saying: ‘I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me!’ (Phil. 4:13) And that’s an indisputable fact! But the only way you are ever going to find out that it’s true is by actually accepting Him as your Lord and Saviour, through faith and not sight. For in Jesus’ economy, faith is the currency, not sight. End of sermon!
Now let’s see what our friend Anselm had to say this week, as he aspired to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And this first quote is indeed a dandy: ‘Worry is the most wasteful thing in the world.’ That’s also another indisputable fact! Worry creates nothing but more worry! And as Sister Joyce likes to say: ‘Worry is like a rocking chair; you can sit in it and rock all day, but get nowhere, not moved from the same spot.’ Yes friends, all worry does is ramp up our fear, anxiety and doubt, thus stealing the li’l productive energy we have left to handle our problems.
And another major thing we need to do in this mish-mash world is to ‘Focus on being productive, instead of busy.’ Yeh too many of us run around like chickens with our heads cut off, proclaiming we so busy that we don’t have time to do anything, and in the supposed busyness, we not really doing a blooming thing in true! Ever ask anybody why they not doing this or that? And the stock answer is ‘too busy.’ And when you ask what they so busy doing, they can’t tell you. It’s such a laughable situation, but one fraught with disappointment and defeat, unless we cut it out NOW.
And to help us do that, we need to learn to ‘Manage the cause, not the result.’ That means looking to the root of the problem, what caused it in the first place, and not focusing on the result, because if we don’t fix the problem, we’ll keep on getting the same wrong result every time. But that’s also another bad habit we have in our modern-day society; we look the wrong places for solutions to our problems. Like we spend a whole lot of time and money in mental therapy, when most of the time all we need is the Good Book and the Word of the Lord to get us through our tough situations.
The medications from the shrinks and charlatans ofttimes eases up one problem but causes several others, some worse than the original one. But that’s how our world operates, and if we don’t smarten up and recognize the enemy, the imperial prince of darkness hiding in some of those corners, we’re liable to end up in serious trouble. But then again, ‘If you do not know how to ask the right question, you discover nothing.’ Ah mih people; the right question eh…
Now that is ever so important in our deceitful, fraudulent society. There’s a scam in almost every situation these days, and if you don’t know the right questions to ask, you’ll most likely get the wrong answer and eventually do the wrong thing. And that’s ever so important for the older folks nowadays, because the scam artists like to prey on those they think are very gullible and easily fooled. Steups! They are worse than the predatory animals in the wild!
That’s why the saying, ‘man’s inhumanity to man makes thousands mourn,’ is so true and heartbreaking. We think nothing these days of bilking an older person out of their entire life savings; in fact bilking anybody out of their possessions is fair game this meeting! But yuh know what my brethren? I’m here to tell you with this last quote that ‘Everything can be improved.’ And that’s the gospel truth! But you definitely need to connect with Jesus; to make him the Number One Priority in your life if you desire to see improvements in any or all areas of it.
And if you don’t believe me, then listen to these awesome words of Jesus as He speaks about the two foundations on which life can be built. ‘Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a (the) rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a (the) rock.’ (Matt.7:24-25)
Ah precious people, Jesus is that rock upon which we need to build our lives, so that when the storms come, like they are coming right now, our houses, our souls and spirits will stand strong and be able to fight them off! Yes, we desperately need the sure foundation that’s Jesus if we desire to thwart the enemy and overcome the storms of life!
Now listen to the other side of the equation as expounded by Jesus. ‘And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.’ (Matt. 7:26-27)
Oh my people, my people, those are words of everlasting truth from the Son of God Himself! And if we can’t accept them as such, then there’s little or no hope for us. Note the simplicity and clarity of Jesus’ teaching. He talks about things we can easily understand. It’s obvious that if we build a house on sand it won’t stand up as well as one built on a strong foundation of rock when the elements come against it. And right now we have the perfect storm of a pandemic and worldwide strife that’s showing what kind of foundation our lives have been built on.
Unfortunately, we’re seeing that too many of them have been built on the insecure and unsafe one of sand, that’s why there’s so much fear, doubt and panic at this time of crisis. But it’s not too late friends…with Jesus it’s never too late to accept His wonderful invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30)
That friends, says it all! Accept Jesus…and your lives will improve… Don’t accept Him…and they will only get worse…The decision is up to you. But you have to make it soon…preferably RIGHT NOW! Much LOVE!
…you can lead a horse to water…but you can’t make him drink…likewise…you can be led to Jesus…but no one can make you accept Him…it’s a personal decision…
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